Walt's Lot in Life
I think this has been the most engaging, horrifyingly hypnotic show to come along in many seasons. Having caught up fully, I decided to browse some discussion boards to gauge others thoughts on Breaking Bad.
I found some great insights, and angles I hadn't really considered, but the one comment that I saw again and again that really troubles me is the idea that Walt is a fantastic failure for choosing a career as a high school chemistry teacher.
Granted, given the fragments we know of his background in science (assistance in research that led to a Nobel prize, a mind for problem solving that is still vividly remembered at a pool party more than two decades later), it does seem clear that Walt could have remained in the collegiate world, or swallowed his heartbreak and found corporate riches as a partner in Gray Matter.
But, (and here to me is the crux of the brilliant social commentary of the show), the idea that being a highly educated and clearly dedicated (he remembers things about even a very poor student like Jesse that many teachers would not have) high school teacher is an automatic mark of failure is appalling.
What's more appalling is the vividly rendered situation that Walt is in even before he is diagnosed with lung cancer -- that of a tenured, educated high school teacher who is forced to take a bad part-time job to afford a very modest middle-class existence.
This is not Walt's fault (though it is clearly his building frustration); this is the fault of a country where the burgeoning divide between the haves and have-nots is expanding at a reckless pace, and in which a man who has inarguably one of the most important professions in this country cannot possibly make ends meet if there is a bump in his road.
Pity Walt for his poor choices, puzzle over his indulgence of pride in refusing charity, abhor him for reuniting with Jesse even after the horrific events of their first endeavor, but don't lose sight of the poignant and powerful social commentary at work here -- a man of Walter White's profession, living frugally and responsibly, and with the need for a medical procedure that appears neither radical nor "experimental" should never have been in this position in the first place.
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I just want to say, Vanveen, that I agree wholeheartedly. To me one of the most tragic aspects of the show is what it says about the American educational system. This show is fiction, but teachers all over the country are put through the greatest of hardships for agreeing to educate our youth. They are overworked, underpaid, forced to adhere to monotonized, standardized procedures and as libel for malpractice lawsuits as doctors. There is no longer any incentive for anyone to be a teacher, and that's shameful.
I think that, much like The Wire, Breaking Bad is about broken systems. Broken health systems, broken educational systems (both for teachers who are abused, and students like Jesse who are lost), broken family systems.
Yes it is a shame that Walt didn't get to share in the glory he helped build. But I think the point is that the real shame lies with the fact that the profession he chose, which is probably one of the noblest any could choose, has driven him to this point.
I agree with you 100% my friend. While this story is loaded with tragedy from the right, left, across the front and center it all springs from a warping of our society and its values.
To me its a story of the strangulation of the middle class as much as the ills of drugs.
Walt shouldn't be in this situation!
A good and decent man, one who's dedicated his life to teaching children ... shaping the future, would ask to be let out of an ambulance on a street corner because he can't afford medical care is as ugly a moment as the drugs themselves.
I personally don't think that message is being lost along the way as it seems to be a point of discussion in a lot places I've been talking with folks when it comes to this show.
Its more subtle but it is a message that is persistent, undeniable and something I'd look for a lot more growth on when a second season with more than 7 eps rolls around.
Wow, teachers in California get paid on the average 65K a year, work 9 month a year, get every known holiday to man off and have some of the best heath insurance of any worker in the state. Or at least workers with a 4 year degree.
JPB2:
Seeing as this is political season.. I just can't resist..... yes, teachers in California are especially well-paid (#2 in the country). #1 is Connecticut. Rounding out the top 8 are Rhode Island, Michigan, New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Want to know the other time all of these states get lumped together .... during Presidential elections --- they are called BLUE STATES, and yes progressives in these states tend to put people in office who put a much higher premium on the importance of education than they do in the states near the bottom of the list -- Oklahoma, both Dakotas, Mississippi, and there at a paltry #46 is New Mexico, where the average teacher salary is right around 40K, and I would be willing to wager that the medical insurance afforded a Walt White would be comparatively poor as well.
Live in a state where your teachers are more justly compensated? Congrats, now go thank a liberal.
Y'all are seriously bringing me down!
Of course, I agree with you. My parents taught school and I have lived the life. My mom taught "special ed" in the '60's and made **$200** extra per year!
After their deaths, my siblings and I established a memorial scholarship in their names. It is a decent award for a graduating high school student, but last year (inaugural year) there were two applicants. Granted, the information went out late, but not I'm sure if I should expect many more for this year.
Last year, the award went to a student who had already graduated, because of a glitch. This year, it is supposed to go a newly graduated student and I am to give a speech along with the award. I am happy and proud to do this, but what can I say that will sound encouraging?
I know this is not the time or place, but I seriously want ideas. And yes, vanveen, I do agree that it is political. In Indiana at least, they are more concerned with banning the gay marriage amendment than with teacher retainment and compensation. I haven't voted in a primary in years, but I will be this year.
I think I know why Walt is so pissed off all the time now.
I couldn't agree more with this. My mother teaches in the Albuquerque public school system. And while Governor Richardson has been trying hard to turn teaching into a more well-paying and respected job, both economic forces and political stupidity (hello No Child Left Behind) make change hard to come by.
And to JPB2--teachers might get 3 months off, but they fully deserve it. I can't think of any job that requires more hard, intense, dedicated work. Every teacher knows that the day does not end at 3:00.
I think Walt's career as a teacher emphasizes his extreme apathy. He has become completely bored with chemistry, explaining the same old basic concepts year after year. This boredom with something that used to stimulate him has leached into other areas of his life. He became apathetic towards everything.
The worst thing that teaching a bunch of teenagers (who are apathetic themselves) for 25 years is the jadedness it brings out in the teachers.
Kristina,
3:00 pm would only be a 6.5 hr day with a lunch.
Kristina,
3:00 pm would only be a 6.5 hr day with a lunch. Last time I looked everyone else works 8 hrs. a day, Gee if I got to spend two hrs of my work day at home leisurely grading papers and make lesson plans, I would be a happy camper. But teachers rock! I teach part time at a Junior College.
I think it is the MOST absurd series in TV/Cable history....A waste of good air-time.
I don't think he sees himself as a failure as a school teacher. I think that when anyone faces a midlife crisis or their death sentence, they cannot help but think of "what could have been." In this situation his benefits at his school apparently are not so good-this is happening more and more in America-I know someone who works for an insurance company and even as an employee he gets lousy benefits. His friend, on the other hand, has gone the corporate route and made lots of money. I don't think you can win in life where all of this is concerned sometimes. I myself have chosen a corporate path and make plenty of money but I always long to give back and admire those who do that for a profession. No matter what path we choose-single or married, sell out to the corporate world or a noble profession such as teaching, I think it is human nature to wonder what the purpose of your existence is and to second guess yourself once you ultimately face your demise.